The girl's mother was involved in a crash with a deer near Ottawa earlier this month.

The deputy who responded to the crash said the driver and her daughter could sit in his SUV to stay warm. The deputy said he warned the girl that his K-9 was in the back, but the girl misunderstood and opened the back door.

"He ran around the vehicle and was yelling at her to not open the door," said Franklin County Sheriff Jeff Richards. "By the time he got there, the door was open and the dog had a bite."

Richards said the deputy quickly used the commands to get the dog to release.

"They're a working dog, not a pet," he said. "So that dog reacted that way because it perceived a threat to its environment and that's what it's trained to do."

Richards said the girl's injuries are minor and the department is paying for her medical expenses.